Chapter 150: Supreme Grade, Ice-凝 (Note: Since Chinese characters are forbidden, "Ice-凝" translates to Ice Condensation or Ice Convergence, but let's render it as Ice Coagulation or simply Ice-凝, wait, no Chinese characters allowed!) Chapter 150: Supreme Grade, Ice Convergence

Leaving the Knight Academy, I still furrowed my brows, pondering the matter of the Red Moon Ore Demon...

Falcon, standing beside me, noticed this and offered a comforting smile:
"Kirin, don't dwell on it too much. Isn't it just a mediocre skill? What's the big deal? Although your advancement quest was much harder than ours and the final reward feels a bit underwhelming, your process went much smoother than ours! You caught up to me in just a few days. Tsk tsk, to be honest, I'm both admiring and envious of you!"

Hearing this, I immediately understood what he meant, smiled, and said:
"Hehe, I'm fine."
"Good thing you're fine! But it's such a shame we wasted two hours today killing that Magic Lizard..." Falcon sounded somewhat regretful. He had originally wanted to witness the reward for a hundred-percent match rate, never expecting it to turn out like this.
"A shame? What's so shameful about it? Don't forget the Magic Lizard also dropped a few pieces of equipment. Care to come with me to the appraisal shop and take a look? Who knows, there might just be a top-tier item in there."
"Pfft! Top-tier equipment, my foot. You were lucky enough to stumble upon that Glowing Shield with a skill last time, but do you think you're that lucky every single time? Do you get a top-tier piece of equipment every time you kill something?"

Being called out by Falcon for my greed didn't bother me at all, because this time I truly had a strong premonition that the Magic Lizard would drop some decent gear for me—firstly, because the Magic Lizard I killed today was likely the very first one slain by a player, and secondly, because the Magic Lizard wasn't like a mere cave-dwelling chieftain. It was a true boss, unlike those non-unique quasi-bosses...

If even bosses like the Magic Kodo Beast could drop two top-tier items simultaneously twice in a row, why couldn't a level 25 Magic Lizard? The chances of dropping top-tier gear were naturally quite high!

The notion that "bosses have a low drop rate for top-tier gear" was probably something fabricated out of thin air by players like Falcon who rarely encountered bosses... simply because they themselves hardly ever got the opportunity to kill one...

I smiled and didn't continue arguing with Falcon. I found the nearest appraisal shop and walked in.

In less than half a minute, Falcon's bizarre shriek of mixed surprise and shock echoed through the shop:
"Damn! Are you kidding me?!"

...

Ice-Crystal Wand (Silver Equipment): Physical Attack 12–14; Magic Attack increased by 30%; Stamina +6; Mental Strength +6; Wisdom +6; Frost effect increased by 10%; Additional Water-type Magic Attack increased by 5 points! Level requirement: 30; Strength requirement: 15; Agility requirement: 15; Mental Strength requirement: 30.

Three basic +6 attributes, one magic effect boost, and one additional water-type magic attack boost.

Whew, called it—another top-tier piece of equipment!

...

The players inside the appraisal shop were now completely captivated by the wand in the appraiser's hands!

One by one, they stood dumbfounded, staring fixedly at the crystal-clear wand in the archer's hand that radiated a faint, icy chill, utterly unable to conceal the envy and jealousy in their eyes.

"Too gorgeous!"
"This... what kind of monster did this drop from?"
"It has to be a boss, definitely!"

Everyone discussed and speculated that this wand was undoubtedly an exceptional piece of equipment... Furthermore, its appearance was infinitely more stunning than the bizarre and varied wands currently on the market.

Especially with the wand body formed from translucent ice crystals, one could feel the faint chill radiating from it even from afar. Its stats were guaranteed to be formidable!

Seeing this, several mages in the appraisal shop eagerly walked over, scrambling to inquire about the wand's detailed stats.

Watching the mages crowding around me with expressions of extreme desire and eagerness, I smiled faintly, stowed the Ice-Crystal Wand into my inventory, and then made its stats public—anyway, I didn't know any water-type mages, and this weapon was definitely going to be sold...

Revealing the stats would just prompt these nearby water-type mages to spread the word for me, letting me see if I could fish out a top-tier archer's equipment in exchange. Even if not, the price of this item would definitely skyrocket due to competitive bidding!

Sure enough!

As soon as the stats were announced, the surrounding water-type mages simultaneously wore shocked expressions, which quickly turned into dejection...

A top-tier piece of equipment!
How could it ever be something they could afford?

However, I still noticed two water-type mages revealing expressions of excitement and exhilaration...
It seemed there were still plenty of wealthy people in the game!

Smiling inwardly, I quickly handed the remaining pieces of equipment to the appraiser.

The stats of the other items were decent, but compared to the Ice-Crystal Wand, the gear worn by the Magic Lizard wasn't all that alluring... They were just a few ordinary tier-three Silver-grade mage equipment. Their stats were fine, though not top-tier, but selling each for close to a thousand gold coins would certainly be no problem.

Once the appraisal was finished, I suddenly remembered the few pieces of equipment and that deep blue magic crystal dropped by the wolf warrior I had killed earlier...

The equipment had already been appraised, but what exactly that deep blue magic crystal was remained a mystery to me.

A thought flashed through my mind, and I was just about to pull it out for appraisal. At that moment, a water-type mage beside me suddenly rushed over with an excited look on his face and said:
"That wand, I want it!"
"Price?" I glanced at him.
"You name it!"
"I want archer equipment of the same level!"

With my counter-offer stated, the player who had been prepared to brace himself for a lion's share demand froze on the spot:
"Huh?"
"If you don't have that, please offer something that moves me enough." My words not only left the water-type mage standing there dumbstruck, but even stunned every single mage inside the appraisal shop.

However, the water-type mage who had spoken clearly possessed considerable wealth, as he quickly recovered and said: "What if I pay with two hundred thousand credits?"
"Huh?" This time, it was the turn of all the players in the appraisal shop to focus their gazes on him, evidently shaken by the "two hundred thousand credits" he had offered!

Even I, a penniless scavenger, felt my heart leap violently...

Two hundred thousand credits!
Damn! Not only would it be enough for me to live comfortably on the scavenging planet for a few years, but it could also cover all my gaming expenses for those years.

With a rush of blood to my head, the word "deal" was practically on the tip of my tongue.

Yet right at that moment, Falcon, who had been standing behind me muttering about "dumb luck" and "unbelievable," suddenly stepped forward and fixed the speaking water-type mage with a strange gaze:
"No way? You want to buy such a top-tier piece of equipment for just twenty thousand credits? Try finding me a second one!"

The gazes of all the players in the appraisal shop shifted once more, and they were struck heavily yet again—twenty thousand credits couldn't even buy a single piece of equipment? Are you extorting someone?

To be honest, even I felt Falcon was being a bit insatiable...

Yet the water-type mage seemed determined to win it, replying quite resolutely:
"Fine! I'll add more, thirty thousand! Any higher and I won't be able to afford it..."

The mage wore an all-or-nothing expression, which almost made me laugh out loud. Suppressing it with all my might, I could practically see my account balance increasing by thirty thousand...

Just then, Falcon smacked his lips and said to me with a rather tempted look:
"Thirty thousand... That price is indeed very good! Shall we agree to it?"

The water-type mage on the opposite side saw that Falcon and I were together and immediately broke into a smile:
"Please, otherwise I won't have a way to answer to my girlfriend."

This remark instantly elicited knowing smiles from the surrounding male compatriots. Such a gorgeous staff truly made for an exquisite gift.

Yet just as I was about to nod, I suddenly received a voice transmission from Falcon...

"Temporarily agree to him, then ask him how to trade."

Prompted by Falcon's reminder, I realized I had missed the most crucial link—that is, credits could not be instantly interchanged with the in-game currency, and trading presented a major issue.

Moreover, Falcon's words simultaneously aroused my vigilance...

Pondering for a moment, the excitement brought by the thirty thousand credits receded like a tide. I fixed my gaze on the water-type mage and said:
"If you really are offering thirty thousand credits, I'll agree. But how are we going to trade?"

As soon as the words left my mouth, the other party seemed to realize this as well, and with a trace of awkwardness, said: "Right... how do we trade..."

Falcon stood to the side, watching coldly, a chill beginning to surface in his eyes. I, too, caught some subtle cues from the other person's speech and pretense, yet deep down, I still clung to a shred of hope.

I hoped the dream of thirty thousand wouldn't truly "fly away"...